BY AYOMIDE OYE
The Nigerian Government has denied apologising to the Libyan authorities over the Super Eagles detention fiasco as erroneously reported by the Libya Observer published on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.
A statement by the spokesperson for Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja, Alkasim Abdulkadir, insisted the publication misrepresented the phone correspondence between the Minister, Amb Yusuf Tuggar and the East-based Government’s Foreign Minister.
He says “Nigeria remains unequivocal in expressing its displeasure and disappointment with how the Nigerian Football Federation officials were treated in Libya.
“It calls on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to urgently ensure that its Disciplinary Board investigates the matter and imposes appropriate sanctions based on its statutes.
Prompt News reports that the Nigerian delegation comprising the players and officials was held hostage for over 15 hours at Al Abraq airport in remote part of Libya, where Nigeria’s chartered Value jet was diverted away from the international airport in Benghazi, where it was scheduled to land originally.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs therefore, states the fact of the matter thus:
“The CDA of the Government of National Unity was summoned to the Ministry to seek an immediate end to the unfortunate incident.
However, not much diplomatic headway was made during the meeting with the Acting Charge of Affairs, Imad Mohammed Matooq Aboud, as they insisted that it was not under the jurisdiction of Tripoli, which they represented, but that of the Eastern Government in Benghazi.
This prompted the Minister to take immediate action by contacting the Foreign Minister of the Eastern Government, Abdelhadi Lahweej, to intervene and ensure that the detention ended.
After that, the aircraft was given the necessary permits to fly, and aviation fuel was accessed.
Both Ministers agreed that the matter should be de-escalated immediately.
Even when Lahweej insisted on rehashing the untruth about the treatment of Libyan players in Nigeria, Amb Tuggar once again corrected the misinformation about the mistreatment of Libyan players during the Nigerian encounter.
He did not apologise or regret the treatment of Libyan officials and players because the account was inaccurate.
Lahweej proposed a joint statement, which the Ministry rejected because it erroneously misrepresented the facts of the incident. Above all, the federal government of Nigeria only shares a diplomatic relationship with the government of the National Accord and not with the Eastern government.
Nigeria remains unequivocal in expressing its displeasure and disappointment with how the Nigerian Football Federation officials were treated in Libya.
It calls on the Confederation of African Football to urgently ensure that its Disciplinary Board investigates the matter and imposes appropriate sanctions based on its statutes.”
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